Lebanon: One Week after the Cease Fire · Global Voices
Moussa Bashir

Most Lebanese Blogs still reflect on the war and its aftermath. Some post photos of Lebanese trying to regain their lives and their efforts to fix that which was damaged. Others write political and social analysis of what happened and what should be done in addition to some personal accounts. Here is a sample. Happy reading.
Blogging Beirut posted some beautiful photos and videos about people returning to their villages crossing rivers on improvised bridges. The return of Beirut's nightlife is also featured. Blogging Beirut has this article on destruction of Al-Khiam Prison/Museum as well.
Zeina posted about her efforts to clean up the oil spill cause by the bombing of Jiyyeh. She also described her post war feelings in the same article:
week of hell.
this past week has been slow and tough. it is almost as if last month was all played in fast forward and then since the ceasefire, we are moving in ultra slow motion. for the last month, i just wanted everything to end… now, i don't know where to begin. for the last month, i would purposefully try and numb myself because i was too afraid to feel everything… today i am begging for my feelings to return because without them, i can not live.
What does the Middle East need? And what it does not need? Sophia at Les Politiques wrote some answers.
Here is another question: Who started terrorism in the Arab-Israeli conflict? The answer is here according to the Angry Arab News Service.
Abu Kais at Beirut to Beltway had this to say about the outcome of the war:
What victory? And where is this victory set?
The way I see it, Hizbullah's reign is over, whether they realize it or not, and whether those pundits claiming Hizbullah victory know it or not. This senseless war may not have finished them off militarily, but whatever Hizbullah has gained within its own community was lost with Sunnis, Christians and Druze, and I should add, sensible Shias. So they “stood up” to the Israeli army. Israel’s inability to crush them does not translate into a victory for Khomeini’s soldiers. The livelihood of hundreds of thousands of Lebanese was probably ruined, and Hizbullah cannot brush it aside as “victory”.
The Israelis called Anarchistian's friend a terrorist but she has a different story to tell:
My friend grew up without a father; with the pain of not knowing his fate, of not having closure. A pain all too familiar for thousands of Lebanese and Palestinians, who await a word on the fate of their loved ones, have been patiently doing so for many a decade. Most important of all, he fought hard to get rid of the fascism that his pain had led him to adopt. And what a major fight it was! He kept asking me, and I could see the horror and pain in his eyes as he brought himself to utter the question, “did my dad kill civilians?” He was burdened by actions he had not taken, torn between his longing for a normal family and the moral questions that his father’s mysterious past raised. He has finally given up on the quest to find his dad, which brought him to Lebanon to begin with. […]
Meet Dan, my friend, with whom I sang and danced on the streets in protest of war, with whom I faced the cops, with whom I blocked traffic. All, a cry for justice. Dan, the child of east Beirut, now the resistance fighter of the south. Meet Dan, my friend, the terrorist.
Mustapha at Beirut Spring addressed President Bush on the issue of the USA donating money to Lebanon:
You see Mr. Bush, I don't know how it works in the US, but here in the Middle East, you can't drop bombs and aid at the same time. We all know that you were shipping high-precision bombs to the Israelis, bombs that could have been used to kill Lebanese children. We all know that America was behind postponing the ceasefire until the “objectives” of the Israelis are met. Honestly Mr. President, no matter how much money you throw at us, you can’t undo the bad press that gave you.
Here is another letter from M. K. Saad at Ms Levantine addressed to P.M. Tony Blair about what should be done to get rid of Hezbollah:
You fight Hezbollah by taking away the reason for their existence. You stop Israel from acting like the bully in the playground. You push a fair and balanced UN resolution. You give the desperate people of Palestine and the destitute people of Lebanon something to lose. You give them schools. You give them hospitals. You give them jobs. You give them hope and dreams. And you don’t give them rice. You let them grow it. Peacefully.
Finally, Dr. Victorino wrote “On Hezbollah, France and the latest UN (Ir)resolution… Plus Why Bushmert Wants to Blow Iran off the Map.